Longford beats Bracknell in NTFA premier football elimination final

It was halfway through the last quarter and it meant only four points separated Longford and the Redlegs in the NTFA premier elimination final.

The Tigers, playing on home soil, needed something special and it came from Lachie Dakin who had been arguably their best all day.

He gathered well under pressure and sunk his left boot into a ball that literally floated over the pair of players in the goal square and through the big sticks.

But that wasn't game over.

Holland, who may just be the best 40-year-old to have played the game, was flying in the final quarter of his career.

The midfielder/forward who played his 450th senior football game a fortnight ago went at the ball like there was no tomorrow.

He skidded his head against the ground going for a mark at half-forward before bouncing back up.

He then gathered and kicked long to the top of the goal square.

After a scramble, it ended up with Bracknell coach Corry Goodluck soccering a goal to again to make it a four-point deficit.

Finals are about big moments and there were then a couple that Longford fans won't forget.

Full-back Connor Alexander had his 'Leo Barry, you star!' moment - think Sydney 2005 AFL premiership - when he took a strong contested mark in the back-pocket.

It was the first thing relieved Tigers coach Mitch Stagg would bring up in his post-match address.

But first the match had to be put away and it happened in the most dramatic fashion.

READ MORE: South find way to break deadlock in dying minutes of third term

Lachie Dakin found himself in the clear at half-forward and kicked a ball that landed short and looked like it would bounce through the points.

Unbelievably, it bounced back towards the goal square.

Longford's Rocky Barron pursued the ball under intense pressure and it got out to Connor Pearton who snapped it through from the pocket.

The scream from the crowd was deafening.

It wasn't long before the Tigers' Sam Luttrell and Liam Davies shared a big high-five upon hearing the siren to sew up the 11.11 (77) to 10.7 (67) triumph.

Holland was hunched over after giving it absolutely everything.

Despite having close contests with the Tigers earlier in the year, the Redlegs, who finished 16 premiership points behind Longford, were big underdogs and nearly snatched victory.

Goodluck, who gave a rousing three quarter-time address, praised his team's effort.

"Finals footy is a different game than the normal season so it could have gone either way and we know Longford are a really good out-and-running team," he said.

"Win or lose, I'm super proud of the boys and the way they played on Longford's home ground."

The coach spoke of Holland's influence.

"We put Josh forward in the last half because we knew he would dominate down there and to his credit, he's 40 years of age, and to still play like that was unbelievable," he said.

"I can't fault Josh, he has been massive for us and the group and he single-handedly nearly won us the game off his own boot so full credit to him."

Josh Woolley was Bracknell's other big performer.

He was spotting up Goodluck, who kicked four goals, early and the renowned midfielder/half-back put in a stunning display for an under-sized ruck against the formidable Michael Larby and Luttrell.

Overall, Goodluck felt his side didn't make the most of their opportunities.

For the victors, senior assistant coach Luke Murfitt-Cowen said the Tigers knew they would have to battle hard for every minute of the game.

"We knew coming in that we'd have to take 120 minutes to grind them down," he said.

"We know that will be the same with Rocherlea next week. It doesn't just happen in the first quarter."

Murfitt-Cowen, who kicked three majors at full-forward, provided great insight into Connor Alexander's game-saving mark.

"I play on him at training each week and he's a very, very good defender one-on-one," he said.

"His best attribute is the fact that he goes for his marks, even when he's out of position he finds a way to defend."

Murfitt-Cowen also spoke to Pearton's match-sealing major.

"You need luck in football and especially in finals and the ball happened to bounce the right way for us at the end there, especially for Rocky and CP," he said.

"But I guess that's a testament to our mids and our wingers.

"Connor is a wingman and he's spread pretty hard from defensive 50 to run down and get on the end of the winning goal."

The Redlegs' Jarod Tapsell sustained concussion in a contest down back in the third quarter.

He came straight to the bench with what appeared to be a blood nose.

"He got a pretty bad concussion so it's obviously protocol not to let him play as coach," Goodluck said.

"It was hard as nails to go back with the flight and to be honest Longford probably had the majority of the play that quarter and I think that kind of turned the game for us personally when he did that."

Longford will now play Rocherlea in the first semi-final.

South Launceston, who beat Rocherlea on Saturday in the qualifying final, play Hillwood in the second semi-final.

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